Cardiovascular exercise devices for use by individuals trying to keep in shape are known. There are numerous types and configurations of devices known in the art. Examples of such devices commonly found in the home or gym environment include the treadmill, the stationary exercise cycle, the elliptical trainer and the stair climber. Exemplary devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,661,136; U.S. Pat. No. 6,159,132; U.S. Pat. No. 6,090,013; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,553.
These devices when found in the gym environment tend to be large bulky heavy duty machines that do not lend themselves to being easily transported or moved. In the home environment, such devices claiming to be storable, may be cumbersome to handle.
In addition to being used as cardiovascular devices, these exercise machines have also been used to rehabilitate those with lower body or spinal column injuries in order to prevent or reverse the process of muscle atrophy.
The stationary exercise cycle is known to be used by professional athletes during the course of a game during periods of inactivity to keep muscles warm and loose. Such a use is commonly employed in the game of baseball by designated hitters who do not take part in the defensive aspects of the game. Int. J. Sports Med. (2004); 25:109–114 and Int. J. Sports Med., (2000); 21:593–597, outline that active recovery, as opposed to passive recovery, aides in the removal of lactate (i.e. lactic acid).
Normally the use of known large scale exercising devices by professional athletes, such as baseball players, requires that the player leave the general vicinity of the playing surface, away from his/her fellow team-mates.
Such devices are not practical for individuals who are wearing skates for example ice and in-line skates (e.g., figure skaters, hockey players) as this requires the removal of the skate prior to exercising and the additional time for replacing of the skate prior to re-entering the skating surface.
Attempts have been made in the art to reduce the size of exercise machines to something that is portable yet still provides the same level of activity of the larger exercising devices.
Canadian Patent Application 2,372,271 discloses a motorized stationary bike that can optionally have a generally low profile and is used primarily for those being rehabilitated. The motor drives the pedals which assist in working of the leg and waist muscles. The pedals of such a device are not conducive to being used by individuals wearing skates.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,108,092 teaches an adjustable non-motorized version of another portable exercise device. It includes a flywheel and an adjustable tensioning screw for regulating the resistance felt by the user. Again such a device can not be utilized by individuals who are wearing skates.
Canadian Patent Application 2,440,039 teaches another portable exercise device for use by disabled individuals that contains a pedal cover that is fixably removable from the pedal itself. The pedal cover provides a larger surface upon which a disabled individual may interact with the exercise device which may otherwise be difficult due to the dexterity needed to use devices with a conventional pedal. Again such a device is unsuitable for use by individuals wearing skates.
It is a primary object of the invention to provide an exercise device for use by individuals wearing skates preferably ice skates or in-line skates.
It is another object of the invention to provide an exercise device that is preferably small and portable.
It is another object of the invention to provide an exercise device that can be used by skaters in the vicinity of a skating surface.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide an exercise device that can be used to prevent lactic acid build-up in skaters preferably said device being located in the vicinity of a skating surface.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide for a method of preventing lactic acid build-up in skaters.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide an adapter for a pedal for use with an exercise device to allow an individual wearing a skate to use the exercise device.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a pedal that can be used with different sizes of skates.
Further and other objects of the invention will become apparent to one skilled in the art when considering the following summary of the invention and the more detailed description of the preferred embodiments illustrated herein.